Sunday, April 22, 2012

There was once a time when I watched American Idol regularly and kept up with all of the reality singing competitions. Yes, every week I waited in suspense to see which contestant would get the boot and which would "win". These "winners" would then have the possibility to move on with new skyrocketing careers. I put quotes around "win" because most often the "winner" would fall off a cliff like MDNA's second week sales and never be heard from again. Over the last few years, I lost interest due to the overall lack of unique artists. I still keep an eye on a few of the major label names, such as Adam Lambert and Kelly Clarkson, but that's about it.

Anyways, through all of those years, I never watched any singing competitions from other countries. I never knew Leona Lewis as an X Factor product. She was just that new UK girl who sang "Bleeding Love". Seeing them on television and only knowing that they were once on television are very different things. I try to keep up with names that pop up on Twitter and blogs, just in case there's a gem mixed in. I casually followed Cher Lloyd up until "Swagger Jagger" came out, so that didn't end well. There's One Direction, who are quickly becoming Bieber multiplied by five. Being American, I feel like I'm seeing most of them in a different light. There's no media coverage and they're definitely not seen as public celebrities in this country. A national barrier does exist. Ask the average passerby who Cheryl Cole is and you would probably get a blank reaction. I feel like this general outside view lets listeners judge these musicians as real artists instead of reality contestants and that's where the guy that this post is about comes in.

Aiden Grimshaw just released his new single, "Is This Love", earlier this week and it's quite spectacular. What I love most about it is the disregard to what's currently the "in sound" on the charts. The drum 'n' bass beat is a relief after so many clones. It's still dance pop, but pop isn't a synonym for generic. I mean, you know that everyone thought "Domino" was a new Katy Perry single. I'm not saying that these songs are of lesser value than others, I enjoy both Jessie J and Katy Perry. It's just nice to see a splash of surprise.

All rants aside, you can listen to "Is This Love" below. The single gets an official release on June 3. Aiden Grimshaw's album, Misty Eye, will be out on August 13 in the UK. We can only hope it gets a US date soon.